Alexandria, VA (October 4, 2001) - The Worldwide Retail Exchange (WWRE), the
premier business-to-business exchange for retailers and suppliers, today
announced the commercial launch of the WWRE Collaborative Planner, version
2.0, to all 58 Exchange members and their trading partners. This follows
the successful completion of the Exchange`s controlled launch, which was one
of the largest web-based implementations of VICS-CPFR®* in the retail
industry.
"The WWRE Collaborative Planner, powered by i2 Technologies, Inc., is
designed to allow retailers and suppliers to contribute to their bottom line
by sharing information on strategic plans, sales and order forecasting and
replenishment - maximizing the capabilities of the WWRE. The targeted
result is a reduction in safety stock, rush orders, and the domino effect of
compensating for the unknown - avoiding empty shelves during promotions, "
explained Don Norman, chief information officer for the WWRE. "Importantly,
suppliers can view retailer order forecast data, which allows them to
conduct business with superior information."
"By implementing i2`s CPFR® solution, the exchange is poised to meet and
exceed the demands of both retailers and suppliers," said Terry Turner, i2
senior vice president, Consumer Goods and Retail. "Based on a flexible
architecture that supports e-marketplaces, the i2 solution can provide
support not only for standard collaborations for procurement, logistics and
demand management, but also for customized collaborations for any number of
business processes."
Since March 2001, the WWRE has been piloting its CPFR® solution and began
conducting a controlled launch in June. Twelve active trading relationships
between 11 retailers and nine suppliers resulted in controlled launch
participants` collaboration on the trading of 480 items over 45 distribution
centers throughout Asia, Europe and the U.S. A wide variety of products,
including `direct` and `indirect` goods, were included in the controlled
launch such as hygiene products, foods and beverages, electronics, over the
counter drugs and apparel.
Results from the controlled launch show that participants experienced
significant improvements in their business processes, largely due to the
value of data visibility between retailers and suppliers. Measurable
results to date include reduced delivery time by 25 percent, a 33 percent
decrease in safety stock, improvements in in-stock supply by 20-25 percent,
and increased forecast accuracy by 30-35 percent.
Many of the participants involved also cited improvements in their business
processes that are difficult to quantify. Safeway Inc., a company involved
in the CPFR® controlled launch, found that the product helped drive sales by
raising customer satisfaction.
"Closer collaboration with our suppliers on promotions ensures that we have
the right products at the right time and price for our customers," said
Linda Nordgren, corporate marketing director for Safeway. "Providing our
customers with the best possible value is always Safeway`s primary concern.
The WWRE`s CPFR® solution has improved levels of communication with our
suppliers and directly benefits our customers."
The Exchange is supplementing its WWRE Collaborative Planner with various
tools and services, such as a CPFR® Implementation Guide and a Member
Adoption Process (MAP). The Implementation Guide is an online reference
manual that consists of proven methodology, tools, templates and a roadmap
to a successful implementation. Through MAP, the WWRE assesses members`
business and technology environments and then prescribes a customized
implementation plan and CPFR® strategy for members. The service also
supports member adoption of the CPFR® solution and ensures a rapid
transition to member self-sufficiency.
*A registered trademark of the Voluntary Inter-industry Standards
Association
About the WWRE
The WWRE is the premier Internet-based business-to-business exchange in the
retail e-marketplace. The Exchange was created with the fundamental purpose
of reducing costs and improving efficiencies throughout the supply chain,
employing product and service solutions typical of a global procurement and
supply operation. Designed to facilitate and simplify trading between
retailers, suppliers, partners and distributors, the WWRE currently consists
of 58 retail industry members from Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and
South America with combined sales of over U.S. $830 billion. To date, the
WWRE has saved its members over $155 million through the use of online
negotiations, its first product offering. For more information, visit the
website at www.wwre.org or www.worldwideretailexchange.org.
###
_____________________________
Laura Battle
Edelman Worldwide
Ph. 312.233.1374
Fx. 312.240.2906
laura.battle@edelman.com
Back...
